Editor's note: This column was first published Jan. 24, 2014 in The Gazette and at montrealgazette.com

MONTREAL - Mike Bouchard is a proud father these days, anxious to be reunited with his daughter, whom he hasn't seen in a month.

Her bedroom at the family home in Westmount will be as she left it before Christmas, her bank account richer by a cool $500,000 or so.

"It was," Bouchard admitted on Thursday, "very exciting for the whole family. Overall, we have to look back on this and be very, very proud."

Bouchard's daughter, Eugenie, who won't turn 20 until Feb. 25, has become the darling of women's professional tennis - not to mention the latest star on the Canadian sports landscape scenery - following her improbable run at the Australian Open.

Although the magic came to an end Wednesday night, Montreal time, when Bouchard fell to China's Li Na - the world's fourth-ranked player - 2-6, 4-6 in the semifinal, she captured the attention of many Canadians. Not only was it Bouchard's best result in a Grand Slam tournament, she became the first Canadian to reach a Grand Slam quarter-final since Patricia Hy-Boulais at the 1992 U.S. Open. Furthermore, Bouchard became the first Canadian woman to reach the final four of a Grand Slam in 30 years. Not since Carling Bassett-Seguso at the 1984 U.S. Open has there been this scintillating a performance.

In the process, Bouchard captured the imagination of a nation. Fully 4.4 million watched her match against Li on TSN and RDS, predictably making it the most-watched Australian Open match ever on Canadian television.

"I'm pleasantly surprised she went as far as the semifinal," he father admitted. "I know what she's capable of. I believe she can beat any player on the WTA Tour on any given day."

It has been a remarkable year for Bouchard, her first on the Women's Tennis Association Tour. She was named the tour's newcomer of the year, ascending 112 spots in the world rankings, completing an eventful season ranked 32nd, becoming the highestranked teenager in the world. She should jump further, into the Top 20, when the next set of rankings are released on Monday.

For Tennis Canada vicepresident Eugene Lapierre, Bouchard's performance down under was like manna from heaven. Lapierre believes the number of Quebecers, especially young girls, who now pick up a racquet and idolize Bouchard should grow exponentially.

"It's tough to predict how big it's going to become, but already it's extremely important for our game - in Canada, Quebec and Montreal," said Lapierre, the tournament director for the Montreal half of the Rogers Cup. "After years of trying to put tennis on the map and getting our players to succeed, we're seeing the light at the end of the tunnel.

"It's more the beginning of something. We're just starting."

If Canadian tennis has turned the corner, it's likely linked to the opening of the National Tennis Centre, located on the grounds of Uniprix Stadium, in September 2007. Today, less than seven years later, Milos Raonic has risen into the Top 10. Vasek

Pospisil also is beginning to ascend in the world rankings and garner attention.

"We need more kids picking up a racquet and ball, playing against a wall, in the street, in the school yards, in the parks, everywhere. That's the next step," Lapierre said. "We want more kids picking up the game. Her results will help us tremendously in that regard." The attractive and personable Bouchard certainly created a stir over the last two weeks. Even her Chinese opponent predicted, following her victory, that Bouchard might become the world's best female player, eventually. Commentators in Australia said Bouchard is the future of women's tennis.

"The WTA's ecstatic to see a young charismatic player like this coming up," Lapierre said. "That's what they've been waiting for the last 10 years. It's good to see a newcomer who will be enlightening the sport.

"The pressure's on her, and we'll try to work with her," he added. "I'm sure she's capable of taking the next step. She has a good head."

Bouchard began playing at age 5. She and her family moved to Florida seven years later, where she enrolled at a tennis academy run by Nick Saviano, who remains her coach. Bouchard returned home when the National Tennis Centre opened.

In 2009, when she was only 15, Bouchard captured the national under-18 indoor championship in Toronto. In 2012, she won the singles title at junior Wimbledon, becoming the first Canadian ever - junior or pro - to win a Grand Slam in singles. Between 2011 and 2012, Bouchard was a six-time winner on the ITF Circuit.

"Definitely, she had the skills that made her stand out," said Zdenek Bukal, Bouchard's first coach at the Nuns' Island Tennis Club. "The main thing was the amount of focus she brought, her ability to concentrate during lessons."

At age 8, Bukal remembers Bouchard taking 10 hours of lessons per week, the student like a sponge, eager to learn.

"She's becoming an unbelievable ambassador for Tennis Canada and Canadian tennis," he said. "She shows true professionalism out there.

"I appreciate the fact I was able to contribute."

Now comes the tough part, not only maintaining her status, but taking the next step. Bouchard will become a seeded player in tournaments, playing unseeded players or wild-card entries in the opening round. She'll be expected to win and advance deep in competition. No longer can she fly under the radar.

"Certainly, the expectations are higher on her now. Hopefully, she can manage that pressure," said her father, a mergers and acquisitions specialist, along with a partner, at Cheverny Capital. "I don't think this will change her. She's very well grounded and has a very good head on her shoulders. She knows she needs to focus on only one thing that matters - that's her job. It's tennis."

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